Gas-compressor.



C. W- VDLLMANN.

GAS COMPRESSOR. APPLICATION men FEELZ'. 191s.

1,31 ,987@ Patented Apr. 29, 1919.-

2 SHEETS-SHEEI', 1-

Carl W. Vullmann Invenfor.

per Al'lorney v C. W. VOLLMANN.

GAS COMPRESSOR.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 2.1918. v

, Patented Apr. 29, 1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Per Hll'orney iinirnn snares cam. w. voLLMAnn, or MONTREAL, QUEBEC, CANADA.

GAS-COMPRESSOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 29, rare.

Application filed February 2, 1918. Serial No. 215,222.

- To all whom it may concern:

acid and other gases; and has for its object to provide a direct acting compressor, that is to say, one involving a direct connection with the source of compressive force, the purpose being to obviate the use of a flywheel or other means extraneous to the compressor proper, for securing the travel of the piston to each end of the cylinder.

The invention may be said briefly to consist of a direct acting reciprocating compressor comprising a cylinder containing a reciprocatory piston, and means contained within the cylinder for securing the travel of the piston to the ends of the cylinder. More specifically stated this means consists of a device whereby the unexpelled compressed gas contained in the end of the 'cylinder when the piston approaches that end, is transferred to the opposite or low pressure side of the piston, this transfer of the compressed gas being effected by a bypass port. In order to obtain a high degree of efficiency from the compressor and to prevent the obstruction of the movement of the piston by any liquefied gas contained in the end of the cylinder which the piston approaches, I have arranged'a particular design of valvular mechanism to, as it were, co-act with the by-pass ports and cause a sudden admission of steam into the engine cylinder during the transfer of the gas from one to the other side of the piston of the compressor. This co-acting valve gear comprises a valvular piston for operating the valve proper during the time that the gas is being transferred.

For full comprehension, however, of my invention, reference must be had to the acaccompanying drawings forming a part of this specification in which similar reference characters indicate the same parts and wherein:

Fi ure 1 is a side elevation of a gas compressing unit constructed according to my invention. V

Fig. 2 is a detail plan view of gas compressing member of the unit and the direct connection between it and the power developing member.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on line 3- 3 Fig. 2.

Fig. i is a detail sectional View of the valvular mechanism of the power developing member.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken on line 5-5 of Fig. 4i.

Fig. 6 is a detail sectional view taken on line 66 Fig. 5; and

. Fig. 7 is a sectional view taken on line 77, Fig. 6.

The source of compressive force in the preferred embodiment of my invention, illustrated in the drawings, comprises a steam cylinder 6, and a gas cylinder- 0, in which compression takes place these cylinders containing pistons e rigidly connected together to work in unison by their piston rods 7 and g which are united by a coupling 71.. The steam cylinder is of usual approved construction and design suitable for developing the power necessary to operate the compressor with which it is coupled, a slide valve 70 being employed and a specific operating gear is arranged to operate the valve while the compressor piston is completing its stroke. I will describe the compressor mechanism, however, before describing the detail construction and arrangement of this valve gear.

The cylinder of the compressor has cylinder heads Z and m respectively each having a hub or boss at, and the head m has an integral sleeve 0 with stufiing box 39, the sleeve containing a gland 9 and having a lubricating hole 8, see Fig. 3. The steam cylinder or engine and compressor are rigidly connected together by having their cylinder heads m and 6 connected up by a rigid yoke consisting of a pair of arms a and o preferably cast in one piece with the cylinder heads and the sleeve 0. The members of the unit being further bound together by a base to and a pair of box like legs a: and y cast in one with the cylinders of the power develop ing and gas compressing members, such legs being bolted to the base.

The gas supply pipes are coupled to inlet valves 10 and the compressed gas discharge valves 12 are coupled to the usual liquefied gas pipes. These valves communicate with ports 14. in the cylinder wall.

, order to sect-ire transmission of? compressed gas remaining in the ends of the cylinder while the piston is completing its stroke in either direction without necessitating the use of additional piping, a port 15 is formed at each end of the cylinder by a short shallow groove extending from the ports -14 toward the middle of the cylinder and small radial ports 16 are formed in the bosses n, the port 1 1 being extended as at 17 to effect communication with these :ports 16. The dimensions :of 'the piston c and the -=axia=l length of the port formed by ll, 15 and 17 are such that the piston will uncover the ports 15 just before it reaches the end of its stroke [thus forming a byapass between the low pressure and high pressure sides of the piston at the end of its stroke and elfecting a momentary communication through which the compressed gas will be transmitted from the high pressure to :the low pressure side.

It is essential to the eflioient working of the compressor that the impulse of the compressive force be exerted on the compressor during the :time that the piston e traverses the port 15 in its returnstroke and the clesigniof valve gear I prefer to use to :perform this function comprises a slide valve 71:, before mentioned, a valvular piston 20 by which the slide valve is rigidly carried through a yoke 21. This valvular piston reciprocates in [cylinder 22 to which steam is admitted from any available source of steam generation by a pipe 23 which communicates with an internal circumferential port 24c:S11"IT.OLu1Cli11g the :pistonat the middle of :the cylinder and'connnunicating in turn 2 with -:a port'25 aleading into a steam chest 26. This steam chest contains the slide valve and communicates with the opposite ends of the stea'micylinder by ports 27 :and 28 respectively, thezexhaust :port for the steam cylinder being indicated at:29. The slide valve is adapted "to, when in one position, uncover either port 27 or28 and efi'ect communication between the other of these ports and exhaust {port 29, the valve being reciprocated intermittently from one position to the other and it is important for the proper working of my gas compressing unit that the movement of this valvebe rapid and timed precisely to operate whenthe transmission of compressed {gas from one side of the gas pistonto :the other is -taking place. The device I prefer to :use for performing this function consists of an oscillatory valve and an ioprerative connection *therebetween and a movingpart of :the unit, the oscillatory valve being indicated at 30 Figs. 5,6 and 7 It is of plug form and rotatably mounted in the valvular cylinder 22 and penetrating the .sameand the piston 20, the latter beingslotrtedra's sat v31 iand32 to accommodate its movement. 'ilihe valve case 35 is formed in the wall of the cylinder 22, and ports 36 and '37 lead from thiscasing to the opposite ends. of

- pling rigidly carries a sleeve '61 adapted to unit, when the throttle is opened the steam the cylinder; while a branch 39 from steam pipe 23 leads to this casing 35, and an exhaust 10 leads from the opposite side thereof. The valve has in its opposite sides a pair of ports 11 and 42 so arranged that when in one position, communication is effectedbetween steam supply pipeBQ-andone of the ports-36 and 37, while the other, 41 or 42, simultaneously effects communication between port 36 and exhaust port 10. Oscillation is imparted to the valve by the piston rods through the medium of the-coupling h in the following manner The slide rod 50 is mounted slidably in a pair of brackets 51 and 52 preferably carried by the arm 1) "of the yoke, the end of .the rod toward the engine being connected by the link 55 to anarm 56 rigidlysecured to the stem of "valve 30. A'bracket 60 on the confit slidably over theslidesrod between a pair of abutment blocks 62 and 63 respectively carried by this slide rod and set irigidly thereon. These blocks are relatively placed and the relative length given to :sleeve 61221118 such as to cause the movement of the slide rod when the gas pistonnears the end-of its stroke in either :direction. The throttle valve for controlling the admission of the steam to the power member of the unit is indicated at 75.

Operation.

In the operation of any ,gas compressing will flood the steam chest '26 andat the same time enter one end of the cylinder 22 and impel piston 20 toward the opposite end of this cylinder, the "effect being that valve is will be shifted to uncover, say for instance, port 28 and comiect port 27 to ex: haust port 29. An impulse is'thus-givenato the piston of the steam engine which is driven to one end of the steam cylinder 6 and simultaneously through piston rods f and 9 piston e is driven to one end of the gas cylinder 0. As this -latter piston reaches the end of its stroke, =it iuncovers lPOl'l} 15 and the compressed gas, which hasnot been expelled and would otherwise be trapped in 115 the end of the cylinder and obstruct the piston and prevent the completion of its stroke,

is forced back through the by-pass presented by the ports 16, 17, 14: and 15. V Simulpeated alternately as the gas piston approaches the ends of its strokes.

The advantages are of an important nature from a commercial, marine and naval point of view; they may be stated to reside in the fact that the unit is practically fool proof. With any compressors heretofore employed, it has been a practice to use a fly-wheel to carry the piston of the compressor to the end of the cylinder thus setting up in the piston relatively great inertia. The result was that when the compressor cylin der became flooded or charged to a more or less degree with liquefied gas which could only be expelled by relatively slow process, the latter would act as a stop for the piston owing to its incompressible nature, and as the inertia of the fiy-wheel was greater than the resistance of the cylinder, the latter was frequently burst.

This danger is obviated in my improved unit by the fact that the steam force is of a yielding nature, as it consists only of the steam pressure in the steam engine. ;With my unit, therefore, in the eventof liquefied gas accumulating in the compression cylinder the engine will be stalled until the liquid can be expelled through the discharge port or ports of the compression cylinder, and considerable relief is given and the speed and efliciency of the engine returned more quickly to normal by the provision for the transmission of the gas from the high pressure side to the low pressure side at each stroke of the compressor piston, the liquefied gas being transmitted just as readily as the compressed gas.

One of the principal advantages of this invention is that the compressor will clear itself of obstructing liquids without stopping its operation.

What I claim is as follows:

A gas compressor including a cylinder, a piston within the cylinder, inlet and discharge valves located at each end of the cylinder, the latter having a port at each end thereof effecting communication between the interior of the cylinder and the said inlet and discharge valves said cylinder having a radially extending groove in its end constituting an extension of said port and a second groove constituting an inward longitudinal extension of said port the port with extensions constituting a constantly open by-pass for effecting communication between the high pressure and low pressure sides of the piston when the latter is at the ends of the cylinder.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two witnesses.

CARL WV. VOLLMANN.

Witnesses:

GonDoN G. Cooim, WILLIAM J. C. HEWETSON.

copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

